Lapis Lazuli
by KiraKiraBluemoon
Summary: Just like Murphy's Law dictates; anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. 15 years pre-Canon. OC -COMPLETE-
1. Chapter 1: Trouble

**Disclaimer: I do not own Boku no Hero Academia. I only own my OCs and my story plots.**

* * *

Lapis Lazuli

Chapter 1:

Trouble

* * *

In a dark alleyway some turns off the main neighbourhood street, sounds of a fistfight reigned, with obnoxious clanging of metal pipes and baseball bats whizzing through the air as company. War cries, incoherent yelling, pained grunts and curses echoed off the grey walls of high-rise buildings. Then, rapid footsteps were heard.

"Freeze! This is the police!"

The only answer the duo— who was on patrol duty— got were incoherent groans coming from high schoolers curled up in various forms of fetal positions, scattered here and there in the dark rubbish-filled narrow space. The uniformed officers advanced warily, safety locks on their guns unlocked and on standby. A lone, lithe figure stood in the middle of the carnage, relatively unscathed.

"Hands up! Do not resist!"

With one white-knuckled grip on the collar of a trembling female student— whose nose had seen better days— and the other bloody fist raised, having only stopped when the word "freeze" resounded. Now this is what they call caught red-handed.

"Fuck." I muttered underneath my breath.

...

A steady 'thump' of shoes hitting the floor signalled the arrival of the officer long before he even came in, the door screeching on its hinges just a bit as it swung open and he stepped into the night-shift room, expressionless.

"Tsukuda Rumi." His familiar voiced droned, one hand on the metallic door to keep it from closing. I immediately grabbed my school bag and brushed past him, head ducked low. The policeman merely gave the room a mandatory once over before closing the door shut behind him, strides long to catch up to me before keeping pace.

Yamamoto Tamotsu, thirty-six and working as law enforcer for at least the past decade walked me out of the police station. Giving his peers that passes by a semi friendly-professional tip of his head along the way, while I bumped fists with a few of them before they continue on their merry way. I stopped counting exactly how many times he has to bail me out these past five years. Hell, I know every single local police working here by now with the amount of times I've been caught. I know for a fact they had started a snacks-only betting pool on when I would be back again, supported by the evident snickers and muffled groans of despair in the break room.

I kept my gaze straight ahead when I passed an interrogation room with a one-way glass window, the two policemen standing outside holding onto a few clipboards and comparing the papers with little frowns marring their faces. Inside, sat a couple of the bruised and bloody high schoolers from earlier, sulking in their seats and recovering from a fright. Looks like everyone has hopped onto the bandwagon.

 _Joy._

He was silent all the way from when we got in his car, pulled out from the parking lot and onto the street, and then proceeding to drive off. I looked out the window from my shotgun seat, bored, as the police station became a small speck in the distance and disappearing completely after a turn. It was only when we stopped at the second traffic light when he finally opened his mouth to say something.

"Picking fights again?" Yamamoto-san queried archly in an attempt to diffuse the tense atmosphere as he urged the car back in motion, being given the green light.

I turned to stare at him earnestly, would have liked to gaze right into his soul if only he wasn't so intent on keeping his eyes on the road. Prime example of a horrible driver right there. I replied in a monotone voice. "I don't pick fights, I _end_ them."

He sighs in both parts exasperation and amusement. "I know, but this cannot keep up, kiddo."

I did not grace that with an answer and merely turned to look back out the window. After a couple seconds, I realised we are not taking the usual road back to my home, in fact, we're headed uptown. Snapping my head back to him with a scowl, fight or flight instinct activated, moving car be damned, I demanded. "Where are you taking me?"

"Actually..." He smiled sheepishly under my frigid glare. "Your father wanted to see you."

The frown was instantly wiped off my face and I leaned back into my seat, watching the buildings roll past. Understanding settling within me, I let out a long-suffering sigh.

...

"All right, here we are."

I eyed the skyscraper dubiously as he pulled the car into the parking lot, or more precisely, the parking lot of the one and only Might Tower. I have an inkling whatever this is ain't going to be good. I was lead down a clean, spacious hallway, people giving us a wide berth when they saw the distinctive police uniform. I was then ushered into a lift and then towards a door on one of the upper floors with a sign labelled 'meeting room' hanging over it.

Yamamoto-san went ahead to place three rapid knocks and before I could even manage to utter a word, I was promptly shoved in the now opened door. With a grin and small tip of his officer cap, he whispered. "Good luck."

The moment the door clicked shut behind me, I can feel the chilly air-condition breeze seep into my high school uniform alongside the judge-y eyes zeroing in on me. My expression went full on default-blank face mode, blinking rapidly to determine if my eyes are screwing with me as I took in the fairly large meeting room filled to the brim with earnest and solemn faces.

Professional heroes are decked out in their hero attires, some wearing causal clothes. Scanning my surroundings, I took stock of the simple wall at the very end for presentation of slides, the windows on one side showcasing a majestic view of the cityscape down below. My attention was mostly on two rather large mountain of a man, one with striking blonde hair sitting at the very end of the table, and the other a fiery redhead.

' _Number one and two is here._ '

Another glance to the opposite direction, I barely withheld a cringe as narrow steel grey eyes met mine.

' _Chichi-ue._ '

...

Well.

Someone is in deep shit.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

 **Plot bunny turned short story, been wanting to post something for Boku no Hero Academia. Expect this to be around 5 chapters long~ Enjoy! X3**

 **~kirakira_bluemoon**


	2. Chapter 2: Intuition

**Disclaimer: I do not own Boku no Hero Academia. I only own my OCs and my story plots.**

* * *

Lapis Lazuli

Chapter 2:

Intuition

* * *

Now that I looked, half of the seats on the right are all occupied by the twelve members of the Special Operations Squad, sticking out due to their casual clothing amongst the sea of colours. With dad sitting right at the front beside a few other big-shots from the police force. A couple of the heroes looked on curiously, albeit warily. In the back of my mind, I wondered what in the world did they tell them about me to warrant this reaction. Then I spotted the files in their hands. _Oh._

All Might was about to say something to welcome me, probably since this is his office, with his ever-present smile when dad beat him to it with a calm and dangerous tone.

"I've sent Yamamoto to fetch you two hours ago once school is out, you should have been here an hour before at the latest. Explain." His gaze is daring me to lie while All Might's smile gained an awkward edge to it, opting to keep quiet for the meantime alongside the rest of the meeting room.

Good ol' dad. Can never hide anything with him around. I shrugged lightly, downplaying the incident. "Got caught up in something."

He studied me a few hard seconds before beckoning me over. My eyes dart upwards a split moment in a 'here-we-go' fashion and tentatively walked over to stand at his side. Up close, All Might is still towering over me even though he is sitting down. Reaching over with a scarred and callous-filled hand, dad pinched my white long-sleeved sailor uniform between two fingers, eyes honed in sharply at the small tear I hadn't noticed before. ' _Shoot._ ' Was hoping he wouldn't have to find out until later when we're back home. Then again, I wouldn't want mom to know about this at all.

"Why do you have a knife slash." At his words, the entire room tensed, some of them frowning in worry as they shot glances at my arm.

I swallowed a little and replied. "They have upgraded."

He stared at me and I stared right back, eventually, he lets go of my sleeve. "We will talk about this later."

Translation: A nagging session and people getting sent to juvie.

"Your seat is there." He gestured near towards the far end of the table, beside the final member of the Special Operations squad. Kobayashi Daisuke, the new recruit, raises his hand to get my attention and I hurry over to sit beside him.

Clearing his throat lightly, All Might resumes his warm welcome. "It is all very last minute, but thank you for your participation today. It is great to have you."

I nod back. "It is an honour to be here."

With that, the second-in-command of the Special forces, Hamasaki Hiroto, turn to me to begin. "As per protocol, we will begin our questioning first to prevent prior information influence. We will then fill you in later on if necessary. What do you think occured?"

The heroes seemed a little taken aback, to do something in complete reverse of what is the norm. However, this is also to partly showcase the authenticity of the information I am providing, since it is technically, based on a mere intuition. I pondered for a few seconds, before deciding to follow a certain gut feeling to roll with.

"Someone, or rather a pro hero was killed in line of duty." I stated bluntly. That got various facial expressions of conflicted emotions. I continued, "In order to buy time for his teammates to escape and report the situation, he stayed behind to hold off the threat. It was a four man team, only one made it back out."

"Anyone else?"

Brows furrowing in concentration, I dug up the phantom traces and plow on. "Two groups, policemen and pro heroes went in. Signals and connection was lost not long later and all was declared MIA within the next two days." Pausing for a bit, I added. "More than half was retrieved, but the rest weren't so lucky."

"What's their current status?" Endeavour queried sharply upon the new tidbit of information.

"KIA." I said unwaveringly.

Quite a number of people look away or close their eyes in silent condolences, teeth gritted.

"Location?" Hamasaki resumed his questioning without batting an eyelash.

At this, I halt for a second, eyes darting left and right as if gazing upon an intangible image. "... A forest, there are mountains and large water bodies, underground caves, seems like a nature reserve of sorts."

The image of snapping, salivating jaws appeared in my mind's eye. Then, a place much too dark to see, something is moving within the inky black, crawling, coiling. "A pack of wolves and... centipedes are involved."

"Centipedes?" I heard someone murmur.

A flash of reddish-pink from the darkness took shape, resurfacing from the depths of my memory. I quickly tacked on. "There's also a pink... pink—"

"A pink panther?" Came a hopeful voice from the police side.

I blinked at him, noting the trench coat he is wearing, an inspector. "Erm, no. Pink lily— no, lilies, a whole plantation of them."

"Oh." The inspector slumps back into his seat, looking oddly disappointed.

This was all in the odd dream I had two days prior. I had a sinking feeling it was happening somewhere else, but it hadn't made much sense then and the dreams also tend to fade away as soon as I woke up, only coming back when something triggers it. Now, looking at their expressions, it would seem I had captured their attention.

"Pink lily?" Hamasaki prods, the questions helping the memories to come back swiftly.

"It grows in underground caves, where the centipedes live." I answered knowingly.

"Any attributes of note worthy mention?"

"The wolves communicate via telepathy, two of them are different from the rest of the pack. One is the leader, it is highly intelligent and able to strategise. Had a really fluffy tail, light coloured fur coat and the largest of the lot. The other is a watchdog, it can fly." I heard a small curse from somewhere, before I frowned, remembering an odd detail about that particular wolf. "Its always lying on its back and seems to have a special bond with the leader. For some reason, no one could see it even if it is right in front of them. It is only able to move its head and not the rest of its body. I think someone broke its spine."

"Why?" Hamasaki queried.

I looked up at him. "So it would have no choice but to use its Quirk to survive."

"What is its Quirk?"

"... Astral projection of sorts. Which would explain why no one could see it, since it technically isn't there."

Displeased pursing of lips could be seen here and there. Hamasaki continued. "Are they being manipulated?"

"Unclear, I know they are guarding their territories though." I answered, picking up on the feeling of protectiveness of their lands being invaded by us humans.

"The centipedes?"

"Smallest ones are about the size of an elephant's trunk, as for the average ones, their length is about the average height of the trees growing in the reserve. The biggest one looms over the forest." A few heroes recline back into their seats with a small shake of their head.

"Do you know what's causing these anomalies?"

"The lilies. They emit an odd mist and once exposed to it for too long, causes changes in the habitants living within the area."

"Anything you would like to add?"

I pondered for a bit before shaking my head. "Not currently."

Hamasaki turns to face his superior, and nods. "I am done with our questioning."

Dad leans forward with his hands steepled together. "Then we will proceed to debrief you the summary of this case."

* * *

 _Name: Tsukuda Rumi_

 _Gender: Female_

 _Age: 18_

 _Attributes: Chin-length black hair and sapphire blue eyes._

 _Quirk: Hyper Intuition_

* * *

 **Author's note:**

 **To be completely honest, I had this weird dream and just had to write it down. The experience is real trippy.**

 **~kirakira_bluemoon**


	3. Chapter 3: Dream Team Not

**Disclaimer: I do not own Boku no Hero Academia. I only own my OCs and my story plots.**

* * *

Lapis Lazuli

Chapter 3:

Dream Team... Not

* * *

Fukui Toshiaki, head of the Special Operations Force stands and walked to the front. "Allow me."

He presses a button to wake the computer and start up the slides, showcasing a map. "The place we are talking about is located between two big civilisations based in the Tohoku region. The Kasumi Nature Reserve, named after the fog lingering there in the early mornings and nighttime, the past few months has shown it to be shrouded in mist twenty-four seven."

The slide changes to show various images of a group of five people, shots taken from various different angles. "About four months ago, it has come to our attention that a group of villains had been having a hand in unauthorised research. After monitoring them for a couple weeks and evidence cross-references, we've concluded the suspicious activities in the Kasumi Nature Reserve is related to them since it had started happening around that time. This case has been transferred three times before it became the joint-collaboration it is now."

The next slide showed the severity of the mist covered reserve, and boy was it hard to see more than a few meters. "It has been gathered that people tend to lose their sense of direction once inside, internet signals and radio connections lost within the span of minutes. The mist also makes it nearly impossibly to see far and with the intelligent wolf pack including other inhabitants prowling about, investigations are harder to carry out smoothly."

"A couple weeks ago, with the help of All Might, we've managed to retrieve over half of the policemen and heroes that was declared MIA. However, they were unable to coherently confirm the happenings during the time period where they were missing. Medical reports showed missing blanks in memories and random blackouts, very little of the event was actually remembered. We've set up a barricade around the reserve to hopefully keep things in and also out, so it is currently off limits to all."

"On the other hand," He gestures to the Number two Hero. "Endeavour here is the only one so far who has showed no signs of being affected by any of the aforementioned symptoms. We suspect his Quirk might have something to do with it. All Might was only able to leave the nature reserve by taking to the sky, which not only cuts short exposure time to the mist, but also negate— to a certain extent— the issue with identifying directions. That would be the end of my summary. Any questions?"

I raised a hand. "What of gas masks?"

"Apparently, not only do they further limit field of vision, but they also do not work very well. Anything more than that is too bulky for the user and they'll become a literal sitting duck. Anything else?"

"Not at the moment." I replied and with that, he bows slightly and returned to his seat.

"And that concludes the case summary. We would need to eradicate these pink lilies before anything else could be done. Since they grow deep underground, our main two issues aside from the fog are the wolves and centipedes. Due to the fact that only All Might and Endeavour has proved capable of leaving the Kasumi Nature Reserve on their own, they will make up two of the three-man cell we have decided upon earlier. Tsukuda Rumi." He levelled his gaze on me. "You will be acting as their human GPS, with the least amount of encounters with the inhabitants, direct them to their target."

"Roger." I said.

"Stick close to Endeavour. His fire should minimise the negative effects of the mist." Scientific translation: Endeavour is our make-shift bunsen burner, ensure we all stay in that _sterile zone_ to remain unaffected from the mist.

"Mission objective: Eradicate the pink lilies. It will begin tomorrow morning, nine sharp."

* * *

Mom is getting dinner ready while Dad is off in his study room filing out the highly detailed complaints on my attackers to ensure that they get the help they needed, mental or emotional-wise. Obviously, they had to had some issues, relatively normal people don't just go around hurting others for the mere reason your face don't sit well with them. ...That I know of anyway.

Since that one time I clashed with a gang in middle school and subsequently wiped the floor —single-handedly might I add— with them, I earned the nickname "sleeping dragon". Hence, getting accosted and chased by rival groups from other neighbourhood schools became a normal occurrence, unfortunately. It got so bad that I quickly became a famous hot topic within the police departments alongside the local hero agencies. By now, the number of times I got into a street-fight is almost directly proportional to the number of law enforcers I'm well familiar with, which is near countless.

Even with All Might and the rise of heroes, there are still a lot of common "bad guys" than one would think. Ranging from school bullies, gangs, thieves, molesters and so on, they are always around, waiting. Nothing much has changed compared to the pre-quirk era apart from the added ability to spring nasty surprises in the form of quirks on _both_ ends.

Dad had made me sit in the room in silence while I go through the existing case files along with tomorrow's mission. I could still hardly believe I have to work with All Might and Endeavour. This by far, is the biggest case I've ever tackled. This teenage-case-cracking-job all started three years ago when I just entered high school, encountering a few detectives on a case after school and pointing out some evidence that could not be found unless you know exactly where to look— would have taken them ages to find and by the time they did, it would have been long gone.

Then the next one is a cold case that no one could solve for almost a good century. Afterwards, due to the accuracy of my intuition and with my dad as vouch, I've been requested to help solve many other cold cases or time-sensitive ones. Mom once mentioned we had been descendants of people liken to Shamans dating back to the pre-quirk era, our sixth sense most probably came from there. Now, it's just merely another Quirk amongst countless others.

"Dinner's ready." A knock came from the door before Mom retreats. Placing the file on the mahogany table, I heard shuffling of papers that indicates Dad is tidying up his work to set aside for the meantime, I scrambled to the living room where she is currently setting the table with food. Sliding into one of the seats just as Dad emerges from the office, running a hand over his face.

Dinner is a relatively silent affair, apart from the occasional light clinks of utensils made on the plates and bowls. Mom suddenly turns to me, narrow sapphire blue eyes piercing. "All is not what it seems, do not let down your guard. It's a free-for-all in there."

"And don't break formation." Dad chips in around a mouthful of rice and vegetables.

Least to say, I got myself my mom's Quirk. I nod once. "I won't."

With parents like mine, I never had secrets to hide and even if I did, it wouldn't be for long.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

 **I have drawn Rumi and posted it on my tumblr account "kirakirablurmoon", do check it out! X3**

 **~kirakira_bluemoon**


	4. Chapter 4: Chaos

**Disclaimer: I do not own Boku no Hero Academia. I only own my OCs and my story plots.**

* * *

Lapis Lazuli

Chapter 4:

Chaos

* * *

It is early morning, the ever-present directional distortion mist swaths the entire reserve in copious amount. The two pro-heroes are decked out in their hero costumes while I donned a camouflage army uniform, completed with combat boots and some weapons. Each of us had on an earpiece and GPS tracker despite having been proved useless, on a just in case scenario that we had managed to eradicate the source of the mist but not make it out of the reserve. After checking us over, the team sends us on our way, the gates to the reserve creaking open ominously.

"We'll be counting on you!" All Might beams, flashing a thumbs up.

"Likewise." I answered with a light twitch of my lips and a polite nod. Endeavour looks like he wants nothing to do with the other hero and just walks on straight ahead with a scowl. I jog lightly to catch up while All Might easily covered the distance with a couple long strides. Giving my surroundings a feel, I directed them towards the underground caves and start jogging.

There are some "blindspots" per say in my Quirk. It was how my parents met anyway. They're carrying out their respective jobs, something along the lines of cop-and-thief, mom being the latter. As she was leaving, her hyper intuition didn't pick up on my dad's presence while his team raided the place, resulting in their first meeting. Not exactly pretty, shots were definitely fired. She was a mercenary from Hong Kong. After who-knows-how-many-encounters later, she subsequently faked her death and married him. The rest is ancient history and here I am.

Not a couple minutes in, I felt like we're being watched and halt, drawing attention from the other two as I turn to stare contemplatively into the shadows of the treetops. There were no sounds of birds chirping, insect calls or any of the like, it felt like walking in a long abandoned cemetery. Our surroundings were so silent I could hear ringing in my ears. My brows furrow together, and I saw a brief flash of a wolf's image studying us before deafening howls resounded all throughout the forest. Startling all three of us.

Hell, it sounded _close_.

"Run." I said, beginning a dead sprint into the thick vegetation. Vaulting over a fallen little tree full of claw like marks, I advanced further and further into their territory. The duo easily keeps pace, keeping a triangle formation with me leading for the meantime. I blindly steered clear from the stray patches of wet, loose soil, rocks and protruding roots. Leading our group straight towards the lake as the wolves don't generally go near there, I opted to take a small break then to get a feel on where we should go next.

Skidding to a halt right after ducking under a low hanging branch probably wasn't a good idea, as Endeavour had almost run me over in that moment. The loose and moisture saturated soil doesn't help our case either. Last minute reflexes my parents drilled into me since young allowed me to take a sidestep, scrapping by with a feet-staggering shove instead of meeting a full on take-down. All Might managed to steady me with a hand on my shoulder, preventing what would have been an embarrassing trip and subsequent swan-dive into the lake behind me.

"Sorry." I muttered on reflex, after getting both my legs steady under me once again, and the flame hero grumbles incoherently, quickly regaining his bearings.

"No worries." All Might assures, good-natured and I winced because his baritone voice sounded _loud_ and we're in the middle of a predator infested forest. He seems to flinch too, having no doubt noticed and lowered his volume. "So where are the underground caves?"

I cast a quick look around and pointed in the vague direction of North. "We'd better hurry. The wolves are intending to surround us."

It started as a tingle, then it went full out creepy-crawlers scampering up my spine and I finally realised _why_ not many of the inhabitants venture near the huge water source. I tensed.

"Shoot." Was all I managed to say before a large and long creature explodes out of the lake, dark shadows shrouding the area as water sprayed everywhere, drenching my hair within seconds. I vaguely heard a splutter and cough to my sides accompanied by a flare of heat.

Scrubbing the remaining water clinging to my face for uninhibited vision, I peer up to see an anaconda, maws wide open and displaying its two sharp needle-like fangs and a forked tongue. The scenery is completed with a deafening hiss loud enough to reverberate within my skull and rattle my bones.

Then a second snake emerges.

I quickly turn tail to sprint away from the water source just as a blur of gold, blue and red flashes past, followed closely with a yell that was drowned out by angry hissing and spitting. Then, a gust of wind liken to a twister whipped up around the area, taking away the moisture in my eyes in no time flat. I pushed on, blood roaring in my ears as adrenaline pumped within my veins in overdrive, fuelling my legs to move faster.

The familiar heat of flames along my back followed by rapid footsteps a little further away signalled that my teammates are still with me. I trust my senses to bring us where we need to as the greenery blurs past me, angry hissing sounding further and further away.

Once I deemed it safe enough of a distance for a small break, I skid to a halt to start a standard check on our well-being. When I turn around, the hulking redhead greets my sight first, then, dread gripped me by the throat.

All Might... is _not_ here.

"That blubbering—" Endeavour snarls under his breath, flames flaring in accordance to his spike of irritation.

I quickly tried to feel where the blonde is, and picked up on his general whereabouts almost immediately. I swerve to my left, and start running, calling over my shoulder. "This way."

Endeavour is quick to follow. ' _All Might is moving fast, if we don't intercept soon, he'll be far enough that we couldn't reach him anymore._ ' I gritted my teeth, slight panic creeping in as thoughts swirled within my mind miles per hour. Charging through the foliage, I sense the wolves steadily closing in, and one in particular is unbearably near.

I warned him without looking over my shoulder. "The alpha wolf is heading straight for us!"

A muffled 'tched' was heard, before the hero increases his speed to fall in step next to me. I changed directions, aiming straight for where the formation is weakest and decide on a break through. Then we'll make a minor detour back to find All Might, the number one is close by. "Two wolves straight ahead, ready?!"

"I'll take them." He practically orders and I immediately slow my pace to get behind him, hands swiftly reaching for the tranquilliser guns in their holsters. I clicked off the safety locks.

Concentrating flames on both hands as a warning, he advances just when the two creatures leap out from the dense underbrush, snapping jaws riddled with sharp teeth and drool. The grey wolves snap and growl, circling and keeping out of immediate range from the fire and turned to size me up. Deeming me as the easier prey, one of them lunged for me. I split away from Endeavour— who was keeping the other at bay— to avoid the teeth and shot it in its flank. A yelp was heard before it crashed into the ground, shuffling and stumbling before finally succumbing to forced sleep.

The other one is keeping its distance now, if the occasional flash of grey fur in the thicket is anything to go by. I felt a constricting panic grip me by the heart. Their alpha is _very_ close. I ran faster, trying to keep pace with Endeavour's flaming and rapidly disappearing back a couple meters up front. I cursed inwardly the moment I knew the leader is upon us. Breaking through the foliage and cutting off my route, is a wolf larger than the size of a bear with fur a pale brown colour. Intelligent eyes studies me and his lips curl back into a silent snarl.

Doubling back a couple paces, I aimed the tranquillisers and fired. The wolf darts forward and the shots completely misses. It is almost upon me when a stream of fire made the alpha pull back, ears flat against its head as it swerve to face the number two hero.

"Head to the front!" Endeavour yells when he set loose get another wave upon the dirt ground, cutting off their reinforcements for the meantime.

I didn't need to be told twice. I sprint for the side and Endeavour barricades the route with fire before the alpha wolf can give chase. I speed off into the general direction of All Might, hearing the flame hero moving to catch up not long after. As I head further and further in, mists encroach, getting thicker and thicker. Dread creeps in and I halt, noticing something is amiss. I turn around and—

Endeavour is not there.

...

' _I will sue fate one day._ ' I promised inwardly.

* * *

Meanwhile with All Might.

'... _I screwed up._ ' Was the first thing Toshinori thinks to himself as he stare dumbly at the huge plant in front of him. From afar, it's rather humanoid looking, so he had thought he had been following the duo until upon closer inspection. The cactus looked like it was mocking him, there's even a tiny bud around waist-height that resembled suspiciously like a middle finger.

He should have used a wind pressure attack on those snakes, he shouldn't have even left the group's side, but his instincts to keep the threat from his weaker teammate(s) kicked in and he acted on it without thinking. He broke formation. Endeavour can take care of himself, but Tsukuda, while the teen has a rather astonishing speed and stamina than he had initially expected, she is still only armed with meagre weapons and a non-combat type quirk. He let out a small, frustrated groan, turning on his heel and hurries away into the... swamp?

' _Shit._ ' He still manages to find new places in this nature reserve despite having been here a couple times. He hopes that he can locate the other two through sheer dumb luck alone and soon.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

 **Ha. They all got separated.**

 **~kirakira_bluemoon**


	5. Chapter 5: All is not what it seems

**Disclaimer: I do not own Boku no Hero Academia. I only own my OCs and my story plots.**

* * *

Lapis Lazuli

Chapter 5:

All is not what it seems (Mom is right)

* * *

"Don't break formation he said." I grumbled under my breath, reciting my father's warnings before sending me off, stalking further into the woods, seething. Angry at nothing and everything. "Follow their orders he said. _They_ left _me_."

All Might is off somewhere very lost and confused, while Endeavour is fuming in another place.

A brief thought crosses my mind and I laments that we should have formed a choo-choo train like kindergarteners do. The mist is fast approaching, thicker now without Endeavour as our safety zone. I could barely see my hands even if I held it in front of my face. The sounds my boots made on the grass and occasional mud made me wince every time, it is too loud. Noise means unwanted attention, I could only hasten my pace in hopes of reaching All Might sooner.

Rounding a fairly large quicksand took several minutes, I squeezed through a thick underbrush as twigs and leaves pulled at my clothes to get to the other side, then everything went downhill. I immediately found myself slipping and sliding down a wet grassy hill with a choked scream. Heart in my throat, my senses are picking up a single living being is down there, managing a quick prayer that it is not hostile and braced for impact.

I collide into a wall of hard muscles and just _knew_ I had found All Might, though I can't say the same goes for him. I let out a panicked yelped when I felt him tense and move on defensive instinct. _I saw my life flash oh god please don't_ before he halts his backhand a mere hairbreadth from my arms, which had raised into a too-late-sad-excuse-for-a-block position when he entered fight or flight mode. Not that it would have been effective at all.

The air pressure was enough to part the fog a little to reveal our faces to the other and I saw a speck of the most intense blue eyes I've ever seen underneath the shadows of his brows. I let out a shaky sigh when he blinked, snapping out of fight mode. _Damn._

"Goodness, Ts-Tsukuda?" He immediately retracted his hand that _almost took my head off_ , gigantic hands hovering awkwardly, his demeanour both parts alarmed and sheepish. "Apologies, I didn't know it was you."

"I figured." I croaked out with eyes wide as saucers, having yet to revert to its usual size. I delivered the earth-shattering news. "I lost Endeavour."

There is a significant pause where his ever-present smile seems to freeze, and we shared a look that rightfully conveyed the internal screaming. Without Mr-bunsen-burner, this mission is a bust.

... The number two hero is going to _roast_ us oven-crispy.

It started off as a low rumble, then the ground starts to quake beneath our feet, a loud swoosh and orange-red light ignited the forest towards our left, casting a huge shadow of an insect monster with hundreds of legs upon the sheer face of a cliff.

"I think we found him." I muttered, and quickly make our way over there. In a split second decision, All Might decided to scoop and tuck me under his arm with a "Pardon me.", before taking off into the trees at breakneck speed. I could only cling onto his arm for dear life.

Thankfully, the other hero wasn't as far off as we had initially thought and we located him by the foot of the mountains fending off gigantic centipedes dozens of meters in length. I gagged at the stench of roasted insects and covered my nose on reflex. All Might let out a small cough and inhaled through gritted teeth just as Endeavour shot a hate-filled glare at the two of us. He finished grilling the last of them before stomping over towards us, the veins in his eyes almost popping with how hard he is trying to fry us alive with his glare alone. All Might raised a hand, expression apologetic, apology on the tip of his tongue when the redhead cuts him off with a snap.

"Save it. Where to now?"

A skin-crawling howl resounding through the area caused the two to tense up and I point towards the side of the cave where an underground tunnel is hidden behind some bushes, the mist noticeably wafting from it. "There."

We had no issues getting in, since the mouth of the cave is humongous, highly likely dug by the largest of them all. I gave directions with Endeavour leading the front— All Might bringing up the rear— clearing a path for us when I alerted him to attack via a single word. "Burn!"

I shivered when I heard the scratching of hundreds of thousands of creepy-crawler legs scrapping along the sides of the cave. Like a homing signal, I knew they were slowly congregating towards us, and our path is a mere hairsbreadth from getting cut off for good. I paled. "Run forwards! Now!"

Endeavour didn't need to be told twice. We passed the corridor just when one of the larger insects crashed into the dirt wall behind us. Through a series of twists and turns, confusing layout that in order to go down we need to go up first, we climbed with the centipede right behind, poisonous pincers reaching for us.

Number two had it easy, his fire aiding him to make footholds in the blink of an eye, while All Might could just simply dig in his heels to make one with pure brute strength. Sandwiched in between them respectively, I had to avoid the occasional simmering molten dirt Endeavour leaves behind, grabbing onto loose soil that forces me to slide back every now. The sounds of hundreds of legs getting _closer_. Sweat accumulates upon our brows, the tunnels stuffy and air stagnant.

It is too late now but I should have had the other hero go first, it would have meant free footholds for the _both_ of us. Poor planning on my part. All Might gives my back a push to hurry me along because it's _his_ arse that is going to pay the price due to my pace. He lashes out a devastating kick in its ugly face and it makes an unholy screech, retreating. That centipede is down for the meantime, then another took its place, faster than the previous.

"Why." That word sounds so emotionally broken even to my own ears and I increased my pace on All Might's starting-to-panic insistence. Eventually, he just opted to bulldoze me all the way up after Endeavour, giving _him_ a shove as well— I heard an indignant sputter— before the three of us tumbled out of the tunnel in record time.

"Down here!" Rolling onto my feet, I head straight for another hole in the ground just a couple meters from us and jumped. It was a sheer drop with barely any angle to even slide, the other two follows quickly. _The lilies are close._ The fire from Endeavour lights our descent, the large centipede draws closer, relentless. Then, a cold shock hits me in my stomach, bile rising in the back of my throat when I realise _where exactly_ we're headed and I hit rock bottom screaming in horror.

 _I really should have let Endeavour go first this time._

Bouncing back to the hole like a cat scorned the instant my feet hits something with a resounding _crunch_ , I grab onto the ledge and yelled into it with all the desperation and fear bubbling up in me. "BURN THEM!"

Their nursery is here, along with the pink lilies. _No wonder they had been so persistent._

I barely managed to duck to the side when All Might comes barrelling out like a rocket, grin resembling more of a grimace, followed closely by condensed blue fire shooting out. Whatever Endeavor didn't clear in that shot, the blonde did with a controlled punch until we had enough clear space to stand amidst all the translucent babies and gigantic mothers coiled tight around them. I managed to bit back a whimper but couldn't hold in the shudder.

"We're here. Best hurry." I added, eyeing the ceiling. "They're all coming."

Endeavour sets to burning the place and pink flowers down, while I seek shelter behind All Might as he fended off the defensive insects, notifying him I will show him where to secure our escape route. It didn't take long for the smoke to start getting unbearable, the smaller centipedes opting to leave instead, scurrying away into the many tunnels located around the space.

The moment I heard the flame hero said, "I'm done." I unhooked a throwing knife from my belt and send it flying to one specific point of the ceiling.

"All Might." I alerted him and went over to the other hero.

"Texas—" Dropping into a stance, he cocks back his right arm, a barely noticeable hum of energy charging, and directs the punch at the marked point.

"—SMASHHH!"

Slapping both hands over my ears with breath held, the ceiling explodes up and outwards in a shower of debris, wind pressure kicking up and fuelling the flames. All Might quickly scoop me up and jumps into the tunnel he created, heading out while Endeavour picks up the rear. His fire working to keep the hungry flames below at bay.

Once out in the open, I greedily breathed in fresh air to clear out any remnants of the smoke, coughing roughly. The wolves had retreated deep into the forest, keeping clear of the choking smell of ashes.

"Great job! When the mist lets up, we'll comb through the reserve and bring down the villains." All Might turns to direct his trademark smile at me, flashing an encouraging thumbs up. "We're almost there, young Tsukuda!"

"Yeah..." Suddenly, a feeling hits me and I said it aloud before it even registers in my brain. "We're actually done."

A brief silence, before Endeavour snaps. "What do you mean _done_?"

I blinked, frowning in slight confusion as well. I hadn't specifically checked the villains whereabouts until All Might mentioned capturing them, it was then I realise I hadn't picked up their presence since stepping into the reserve. "As in, there aren't any villains for us to deal with. Not anymore at least."

"What happened to them?" All Might despite his smile, sounded solemn.

"... I'm not so sure. I just know they aren't nearby and neither will they cause anymore trouble. They just... don't exist? Went missing? I think. Perhaps they've been dealt with by the native animals." I deflated, shoulders slumped. "Apologies, it's all very vague."

"That's..."

Endeavour closes his eyes as if in immense pain. "We will decide what happens next once we get in contact with the outside."

" _To-do to-do~ To-do to-do~"_

A classic melody starts ringing, startling the two pro heroes while I calmly reach into my vest and pulled out my little pink and white striped phone. I hummed thoughtfully, eyeing the signal bar as they lean in over my shoulder to stare. "Reception's back."

A rustle of the underbrush was heard then and all three of us tensed, rightfully wary. Within the alleviating mist, a pink, slender and hazy shape emerges from the side of the bushes, walking across the dirt path in front of us. It halts, round yellow eyes blinking back at us as the pink panther ringtone continues to sound in the background. It raises a curious eyebrow, long tail swishing in interest.

"Holy shit."

It was the first time I've ever heard All Might curse aloud, and also the first time we were so close to having our eyebrows singed right off when Endeavour's hold over his flames faltered, flaring dangerously.

I quickly tapped on the camera icon.

* * *

Within an office located in one of the many tall skyscrapers of the city, an unassuming file marked: "Case Closed" in bold red stamp was currently being browsed.

The mission ended once the experimental pink lilies had been removed from the Kasumi Nature Reserve, the three-man team having successfully completed their mission objective and also brought along a surprise package with them.

Tsukuda Rumi has led them to a cave after picking up something with her Hyper Intuition, and found the initially assumed KIA personnels, all in hibernation mode. Everyone has been retrieved, accounted for and admitted to the hospital. Conclusion showed they were in Hyper Intuition's blindspot, hence the initial flawed verdict. Due to unpredictable changes in the reserve's inhabitants, from then onwards, the Kasumi Nature Reserve will be officially declared off limits to everyone.

Flipping to the last page, the browser's hands start to shake.

For at the end of the report is an attached image; a rare selfie of one grinning Tsukuda Rumi and _the_ pink panther flashing a peace sign.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

 **That's all, folks! XD**

 **~kirakira_bluemoon**


End file.
